Deep in the Forbidden Forest
by chelleb0b
Summary: As Head Girl, Hermione has plenty of tasks to perform this year. One of those tasks, however, requires the help of a certain Slytherin...
1. Preliminary Chapter

A/N: Welcome to my first Harry Potter fanfic! I hope that you enjoy this short but sweet preliminary chapter...if you would like me to continue this story, please review! I'll continue according to the feedback I receive from all of you :) Happy Reading!

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Entering the Gryffindor common room from her dormitory for the last time, Hermione Granger felt a sadness overwhelm her. Although she was extremely pleased to be told by Dumbledore that he wanted her to be Head Girl only two days after moving in, she did not want to leave her home of six years. She walked over to her favorite chair that sat close to the fireplace right next to the large, open window and took a deep breath.

_It'll be fine. I can visit back here whenever I want,_ she thought to herself. The breeze of September flew through the window and danced on her rosy cheeks, lightly blowing the strands of hair that hung around her face. Her mind raced through all the memories she had had in the past years of living in Gryffindor tower. She gazed absently at the fire and remembered when dear Sirius would visit her, Harry, and Ron. Her eyes drifted towards the coffee table, where the chessboard was set up. She smiled as she imagined her two best friends battling it out to see who could reach check-mate first; Ron, being an exceptional chess player, would always win.

Taking one last look out the common room window, Hermione stood up and began walking towards the portrait door.

"Hermione, wait up," shouted a voice from behind her. Hermione turned to face her best friend, the boy who was destined to defeat the darkest wizard there ever was, You-Know-Who.

"Harry," she started with a false smile, not wanting to show her sadness. "What are you doing awake? It's only 7:30."

The Boy-Who-Lived chuckled and looked down. He was holding something in his hand. "I just wanted to give you this." Hermione gave Harry an inquisitive look and put her hand forward. He placed what appeared to be a silver time-turner on a silver, linked chain in her open hand.

"Oh, Harry…it's lovely!" Hermione exclaimed and gave Harry a hard hug. "But, what is it for? My birthday isn't for another three weeks," she said with a raised eyebrow.

Harry shrugged. "Well, I want you to put it somewhere in the Head Tower, to remind you that I'm always there, I suppose," his face flushed somewhat as he looked up into Hermione's eyes. "I also wanted to thank you, for always being there for me, and for Ron…and I know you always will. Do try to visit; I know you will be very busy this year, as will I…" Hermione thought she saw a hint of darkness in his eyes, but before she could decide on it, his face was back to normal. "…but don't forget to stop in once in a while. It would be nice to see you outside of class, and be able to talk without having Snape swatting us in the back of our heads for it," he said with a laugh.

Hermione smiled. She knew what Harry was thinking. She was a busy girl, but it wasn't like she wouldn't make time for her friends. The idea of not spending time with Harry and Ron was unbearable; however, she knew that as Head Girl, she would have a multitude of tasks to perform, duties to fulfill, as well as a ton of homework to complete. The NEWTS exams would be taken at the end of this year, and she would have to be over-prepared to get Outstanding's on every test.

"Don't worry, Harry. I'll be around as much as I can, okay?" She reached down and grabbed her suitcase. "Try to stay out of trouble now that I'm not there, alright?" Hermione reached out and gave Harry one last hug, before turning on her heels and walking, somewhat reluctantly, out of Gryffindor Tower.

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Hermione turned the corner and walked to a dead-end hallway, where she came upon a large portrait of a breathtaking woman. _She must be part veela_, thought Hermione as the woman opened her dazzling eyes and looked down at her.

Hermione felt a sting of anger as she remembered all too well how Ron drooled over most of the women who had visited Hogwarts from Beauxbatons during their fourth year. She looked up and couldn't help feeling a little nervous. "I haven't been told the password yet…I was hoping that Dumbledore would be here to…

"You silly girl, there are no passwords for the Head Tower," the veela interrupted with her sing-song, throaty voice. "You simply touch my necklace with your finger. Then, the door will open. Keep in mind that only your finger and the Head Boy's finger can open this door, so if you invite any of your little friends in, you must be present in order for them to enter." She sang in a somewhat bored tone.

Hermione rolled her eyes and shook her head. "Ok, thank you," she said as she put her index finger onto the necklace of the veela. The veela's eyes closed as the necklace burned, forcing Hermione to move her finger away. "Ouch!" she exclaimed as she brought her finger to her mouth. No sooner had Hermione removed her finger that the door swung open majestically. Hermione's finger hung in her mouth as she stared through the portrait door, unmoving. The room was enormous, with a beautiful white leather couch facing the door and overlooking a glass coffee table. On the couch were several over-sized light blue pillows, which appeared extremely cozy. Underneath the couch was a large, blue fuzzy rug, which was spread across a light, hardwood floor. On either side of the couch were two mahogany side tables, which were each occupied by matching candlesticks. Opposite the couch closest to the door were two matching chairs, which faced away from the door. Behind the couch, wonderful sheer curtains covered two huge windows which gave a view of the lake, which was sparkling in the fall sunshine. Off to either side of the room were two doors; and carved into each of the doors in gold were the words "Head Boy" and "Head Girl".

Hermione finally got her legs working as she walked through the portrait door and headed towards the left, where "Head Girl" was engraved on the door. She gently put her hand on the golden door knob and opened it. The room was so beautiful that a small gasp escaped her lips. The room was, although not as enormous as the common room, very large. Immediately to the right there was an armoire, which faced towards the opposite end of the room. To the left, a desk which had several drawers, as well as several school supplies sitting on top, including her books, extra parchment, and quills. Her four-post full sized bed was three steps up, which included a night table with a candlestick which matched the ones in the common room. The theme of the room seemed to be a light sea-green, with a beautiful silk comforter and several white and green pillows to match. The walls were painted a light green, and occupying them were several portraits of the castle. Another door caught Hermione's eye, which was next to the bed. She opened the door and found herself in the Head Girl's bathroom. She squinted slightly as the brightness of white filled her eyes. A white, tiled floor, a white sink, and a white bathtub occupied the small bathroom, with bright green towels hanging from the hooks and from the towel rack.

_Being Head Girl certainly does have its advantages,_ thought Hermione as she walked back through her bedroom, into the common room, and grabbed a fluffy pillow as she plopped down on the couch.

It was really unbelievable to Hermione that she was really going to spend the year here. She never imagined herself being Head Girl, honestly. Of course, she does receive top grades in her year, but considering the friends she has, and the trouble she's been in, she thought that she would have only remained a prefect. Now that she was Head Girl, she would be sure to fulfill all her responsibilities, and keep the other students in line. With Voldemort still at large, being Head Girl would be very challenging.

The creak of the portrait door snapped Hermione out of her thoughts and back into the Head common room. She realized it must be the Head Boy. Now that she thought about it, she didn't know _who_ the Head Boy was. Then, a thought struck her. _Harry!_ Harry was always one for surprises. Perhaps he put on that speech this morning, only to shock her later on when he walked through the door unannounced.

Hermione stood up, excited at the fact of living with her best friend. When the door slammed shut, Hermione's smile quickly disappeared. She stood up and gaped at the man who walked through the door. Her stomach turned as she started first at his blonde hair falling into his ice blue eyes. There's no way…

"Malfoy!"

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A/N: Well, thats the preliminary chapter! I hope you are curious to find out more about my story, and please, PLEASE review :) Thanks for reading!


	2. The Meeting

A/N: Even though I haven't gotten many reviews (Thanks to the two people that did!) I'm still posting chapter 1...hopefully this will get you interested, and as always, Happy Reading!

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Hermione's cheeks flushed crimson as Draco Malfoy sneered at her from behind the white blond strands draped around his icy blue eyes.

"Well, well, well," Malfoy took several steps towards the couch and stopped so that he was standing over Hermione in a very menacing manner. "I should have known that bloody fool Dumbledore would choose you to be Head Girl," he said coldly. "Although, you'd think he would at least warn me that I would be sharing my space with a _mudblood_ the whole year," Malfoy's smirk widened.

Hermione was a smart girl. She knew Malfoy's game; they have had an ongoing exchange of insults, which all too often lead to bad situations, such as the slap in the face he received from her in their third year. She would take no part in that as long as she had to live with him.

The clever witch stood up so that she and Malfoy were only inches from each other. He leered at her. "Hold your tongue, Malfoy," she said. "It disgusts me enough that we have to share quarters, let alone hearing your voice and all the insults that come with it." With that, Hermione gave him a dirty look and started towards her room. Before Hermione could open her door, Malfoy's hand pulled her wrist back, hard.

"Don't you dare think that you can walk away from a Malfoy and get the last word," his eyes narrowed and gave her wrist a hard squeeze. "Because I'll make sure that it doesn't happen, _ever_."

Hermione wrenched her arm out of his grasp, gave him one more evil look, and then marched straight into her bedroom, slamming the door behind her.

_How dare he speak to me like that, and grab me no less!_ Thought the girl as tears started shimmering in her eyes. _No_, thought Hermione, _I won't let him get to me, I won't!_ Hermione brushed her eyes with the sleeve of her sweater and walked towards the bedroom door. When she was sure she heard Malfoy leave the common room, she crept out of her room, picked up her Ancient Runes textbook and, with her wand securely in her robes, slipped through the portrait door.

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"He said _what_?" The three Gryffindors were sitting together at their table, eating a breakfast of eggs and bacon, with delicious pumpkin juice to wash it down.

"I'll kill him, the prat…how dare him say anything like that to you!" Ron's hands balled into fists and his face twisted as he thought about different ways to pound Malfoy flat.

"Relax Ron," said Hermione, rolling her eyes, "He's all talk. Do you really think he would try anything in the Head Tower? Everyone knows that it's illegal to perform magic there anyway. If you do try, you get a warning, which I've read is highly unpleasant." She took a sip of juice and continued. "Of course, if there was an emergency, and one tried to use magic in the Head Tower, it would be allowed."

Ron gave a quizzical look. "Well, I didn't know that! I bet Harry didn't know that either," her turned to his friend for support. "Did you know that? How did she know that?"

"Honestly Ronald, if you would have read _Hogwarts; a History_…"

Harry cut in. "Right…Anyway, what did he say after calling you that? If he did anything to hurt you…" Harry glanced over at the Slytherin table, which still remained fairly empty, as it was only 9:00 on a Saturday morning.

Hermione shook her head. "Don't worry, Harry. He just called me that loathsome name and then went into his room." She gave them a small smile. "It's nothing to worry about, really. Besides, I bet he doesn't know we aren't allowed to use magic in the head tower. Personally, I can't wait until he tries," The two boys looked at each other while Hermione gave a laugh and took a bite of her eggs.

"So what are you two planning on doing today?" Hermione asked, putting her fork back on her plate.

"We were thinking about going to play quidditch actually. Now that I'm the captain, I'm going to have to recruit new players." Harry said. "I want to personally make sure that my Keeper is ready for tryouts when they do come up," he gave a meaningful look to Ron and elbowed him in the chest.

Ron started nodding at Harry, and then looked at Hermione, still nodding. "Oh, yeah. Quidditch, uh huh. I need practice, and lots of it, too."

Hermione raised her eyebrows. "So that's all you're doing today; quidditch," she said curiously. "No other plans or anything like that?" she asked.

Harry and Ron shook their heads quickly. "Nope, not a one. It's a beautiful day after all; we wouldn't want to waste it or anything," said Ron, smiling crookedly.

"Okay…" she said, glancing at her watch. "As for me, I have a lot of studying to do. Plus, I have a meeting with Dumbledore at 1 o'clock…what are you two looking at?"

Harry and Ron exchanged looks before looking back at Hermione. "You're studying on a Saturday morning, after only three days of school?" said Ron. "How can you already have homework?"

Hermione stood up roughly. "Unlike you, _I_ would like to get good grades on my NEWT's exams, thank you very much!" With that, Hermione walked away in a huff.

"Was it something I said?" said Ron to Harry, who just shrugged.

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Hermione spent the next few hours in her room, first studying alchemy and then switching to potions, where she began going over the four ingredients of a Phiggle Potion, as well as where to find them.

"Let's see, this genus of toadstool can only be taken from the lake if it's three days after the full moon…or is it before…" A hard knock caused her to look up quickly.

"What do you want," Hermione said loudly, already knowing it was Malfoy at the door.

Her door swung open and the pale-faced Slytherin stood in the doorway. Unlike the black robes with the serpent on the lapel that he usually wore, Malfoy wore a pair of dark jeans and a black long-sleeved shirt, which, most girls at Hogwarts would say, hugged his upper body very well.

"I love to interrupt your studies, Granger, but we have a meeting with Dumbledore in five minutes." He crossed his arms across his chest and narrowed his eyes. "Wouldn't want to anger the Headmaster, would we?" He sneered at Hermione.

"And why is it you felt the need to come and inform me of a meeting I was already aware of, Malfoy? Care if I'm late, do you?" Hermione said, raising her eyebrows.

Malfoy's eyes narrowed further as he stormed out of her room and slammed the door shut behind him. Hermione waited until she heard the portrait door close, and stepped out into the common room. She looked at her watch, which just turned 1:57. She decided she would wait just another minute, so she didn't have to catch up to Malfoy on the way to the meeting with Dumbledore. Besides, thanks to a few marauders, she knew a shortcut to the Headmaster's office.

Back in her fourth year, Harry, Ron and Hermione had used the Marauder's Map quite often. When Hermione was in full view of the map, she was astonished at just how many secret passageways and "shortcuts" there were in the castle. Harry and Ron were excited to learn of so many ways to avoid Filch and Professor Snape in the halls, but clever Hermione was quite the opposite; anxious and scared. Now that Voldemort had indeed returned, seeing passageways that were unbeknownst to the teachers was a very uncomforting thought indeed. Voldemort, formally known as Tom Riddle, attended Hogwarts when he was a lad, and just like Harry, he was probably aware of many things that other students (and teachers) were not. What if he knew about some of the hidden passageways? His fellow Death Eaters would be able to enter the grounds without anyone being the wiser. As all of these thoughts stirred in the young Gryffindor's mind, she exited the Head Common Room and, using one of these shortcuts, made it to Professor Dumbledore's office in less than a minute.

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When Hermione entered the Headmaster's office, she walked over to the big, oak desk that she'd seen due to previous visits there. Albus Dumbledore was sitting at this very desk, writing what appeared to be a list. Before Hermione could announce her arrival, she heard the door open. As Hermione guessed, Malfoy strutted into the room, looking somewhat pleased until he saw Hermione had arrived before him. Luckily, before he could say anything, Dumbledore spoke.

"Please, have a seat."

Once both Malfoy and Hermione were seated comfortably in the two armchairs facing the Headmaster's desk, Albus Dumbledore put his quill down and looked up.

"Hello Miss Granger, Mr. Malfoy. I suppose you've found your lodging quiet well?"

Hermione and Malfoy nodded their heads. Dumbledore looked at each student, then began to speak.

"Wonderful! Because I have faith in both of your abilities, I have chosen you, Draco, as Head Boy; and you, Hermione, as Head Girl. Now, as Head Boy and Head Girl, you two have major responsibilities." Dumbledore looked at each of the Heads and smiled.

"At this time, I will tell you the tasks you need to perform this year. Firstly, you are required to patrol the hallways and make sure that every student is out of the hallways and in their respectable classes while on duty. Of course, if you are not on duty, I would expect you to do the same thing, being the wonderful students you are." his eyes sparkled as he glanced at Hermione over his half-moon spectacles. "Secondly, as you both know, magic in the hallways is prohibited. Please make sure all Hogwarts students are aware of this..."

Hermione and Malfoy listened intently as the Headmaster went over each rule with them, making sure each of them understood what needed to be done as Head Boy and Girl. Once Dumbledore had finished his speech, he dismissed them. As Malfoy headed out of the circular room with Hermione following, Dumbledore stood up.

"Miss Granger, a word if you please." Hermione turned around, somewhat surprised, and sat back down in the comfortable chair facing Dumbledore's desk.

Hermione was surprised by the first question. It was a simple question, but for some reason Hermione knew that this very question would lead to more complex answers.

"How are things going in the Head Tower?" Dumbledore asked.

"Er, fine I suppose," Hermione answered, looking down at her feet.

"And how are things with dear Draco?" Dumbledore continued.

"Well, alright I suppose, although…"

"Although you were wondering why Draco was made Head Boy, am I correct?" Dumbledore interjected.

Hermione pondered this statement for a moment. It was true that she didn't exactly expect Malfoy of all people to be Head Boy. I mean, sure he had good grades, probably surpassing everyone with the exception of herself. But to have given the position to a student whose father was currently locked up in Azkaban prison for being a Death Eater and for attempting to kill her and her friends? Surely Dumbledore didn't look over that before choosing Malfoy.

"Yes, sir." She said quietly.

"And why would you think I would do such a thing, Miss Granger?" Dumbledore asked her, folding his hands in front of him.

Hermione thought this over. "Well sir, perhaps I have something to do with this?" She asked.

"Your cleverness never ceases to amaze me," Said the Headmaster, causing Hermione to blush. "And yes, you have _everything_ to do with it. You have a special task to perform for me this year, and I do hope you are up to it."

Hermione nodded, and Dumbledore continued.

"Mr. Malfoy, I fear, is headed in the wrong direction in life. In his earlier years at Hogwarts, I did not want to believe that an innocent boy could grow up to be as his father had grown, especially under my supervision. However, Draco has grown up quite like his father. He has a tendency to control people, as he does with his friends Crabbe and Goyle I've noticed, as well as having a thirst for power. Now that he is almost of age, I'm sure his father would like to celebrate his birthday in a very horrible way."

Dumbledore stood up and started pacing behind his desk. "Do you know what I'm referring to, Miss Granger?"

Hermione thought for a moment. "The Dark Mark…" She said quietly.

"Precisely!" Dumbledore smiled at her as if she had told him accurately the exact use of a bezoar. "Draco, by demand of his father, will be called on his 17th birthday, June 5th, to be branded by the Dark Mark. What I need from you is to convince Malfoy that he does not have to go through with it; that joining our side is imperative for the defeat of evil."

"But sir," Hermione said after a slight pause. "Wouldn't it make more sense for you to speak with Mal…Draco? He would hardly listen to me, a muggle-born."

"Ah, there you are wrong, dear girl. Sometimes, it takes more than authority to get through to someone. I will leave this entirely in your hands," His gentle eyes twinkled as he spoke.

Hermione thought that what Dumbledore was asking for was nearly impossible. However, she did not want to disappoint him. "I understand sir, and I will do my best." She promised.

"Good luck to you, Hermione. Now I do suggest that you enjoy this weather while you still have a chance." With that Hermione stood up and walked towards the door. Before she left, she turned back around. There was something more, there had to be…

"Headmaster?" she said.

"Yes?"

"There's something more to this, isn't there?" She said. Dumbledore stared at Hermione for quite a few moments before a secret smile appeared on his face.

"Let's leave that discussion for another time, shall we? Good day." He said, the knowing smile never leaving his face.

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A/N: Malfoy's birthday IS June 5th, however, he would be turning 18, not 17, in his seventh year at Hogwarts...but I changed his age just to make my story work a little easier...sorry about that mistake!

Well I hope you liked chapter 1! Please, PLEASE review if you would like to read more...I'm hoping for about 5-10 reviews before posting chapter 2 :) Thanks for reading!


	3. Discussions and Accusations

I'm so sorry to all who were reading this story. A LOT has happened since I began this story and I honestly didn't have the time for it. I promise I'll try to write as often as possible…this chapter was originally going to be longer, but I figure I should get a chapter out just in case there was anyone waiting to read more…I hope you all are still going to read this! Once again, I'm sooo sorry everyone, here's chapter 3! Enjoy!

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Draco slammed his fist against the large oak door in the Head Dormitory. Why is it that every time he knew he had her beat, she always had to find a way to one up him and beat him? That mudblood made his blood boil, even more-so than his horrible living conditions he would have to deal with the entire year.

Draco had always hated Granger from the first time he saw her—that bushy hair, those buck teeth (that he had the wonderful opportunity to enlarge further a few years ago—it's a shame she was able to shrink them), and her snotty know-it-all attitude that made him want to jinx her mouth right off her face.

There was only one thing that Draco almost admired about her—although he _hated_ to admit it—was her lack of fear. He had pondered over it many times before. He was Draco Malfoy, son of Lucius Malfoy, and everyone either feared him or wanted to be him. He knew deep inside that even that scarhead friend of Granger's had some sort of fear of him. But that Granger girl was different. She even had the audacity to slap him back in their third year—daring to put her filthy hands on him. He had vowed that he would get her back for that; somehow make her regret ever even touching him.

A groan of the main dormitory door jerked Draco out of his thoughts. Draco wandered to his door to see his bushy-haired roommate settled in the chair and staring absentmindedly out the window.

"Back late are we Granger?" Draco crossed one leg over the other and leaned against the doorframe, giving his all-to-familiar smirk. Normally he would expect Granger to come up with some snide remark—however, she just sat there and continued staring out the window, her eyes narrowed as if searching for something.

Is she deaf or something? "Having trouble hearing are we?" Draco continued, walking towards the couch and plopping down. "Perhaps a few jinxes will wake you up?" Draco pulled out his wand and twirled it in his hands. Granger turned her head and just looked at him. This girl is either really gutsy, or really stupid. Draco continued spinning his wand while Granger continued to stare at him. He started to feel a small knot in his stomach. What was she staring at, anyway? It looked as though she was not looking at him, but rather trying to see into him—trying to look deep into his soul—definitely not a comfortable feeling at all.

"Snap out of it would you!" Draco said rather loudly. Granger's eyes blinked twice and focused on Draco, narrowing at the sight of his glare.

"Wha…what is it?" Granger said, raising her eyebrows. "What do you want, ferret boy?" She said with more indignation. What was wrong with this girl? She was acting rather strange…even stranger than usual. Draco crossed his arms in front of him and sniggered; a laugh that most girls swooned at. Not Granger.

"Nothing that concerns you, mudblood," he spat. He turned on his heels and left the common room, with Granger still out of sorts.

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Hermione watched Malfoy stalk off into his room. She hardly heard what he was saying to her—although she saw his wand in his hand, she was too busy staring into his hard grey eyes to care. Her mind was racing with ideas on how she would be able to complete Dumbledore's task. She didn't quite know what to do. Her conversation with the Headmaster left her with so many thoughts that she didn't even know where to begin. Malfoy was going to become a death eater at the end of the school year…how could she possibly stop him from doing that? She knew that Malfoy looked up to his father a great deal---unfortunately his father happened to be one of the death eaters who tried to kill her and her friends and wound up in jail for it, not without leaving a rather large scar across her left thigh. It's a good thing that Lucius was out of the way, or else this mission would be ten times more difficult.

Now that Lucius has been in jail for the past year, she wondered just how Malfoy was staying in contact with the rest of the death eaters. Could it be possible that he was more deeply involved than she thought? Hermione leaned her head on her palm and continued to think. He must have some serious connections now that his father was in jail; how else would he become a death eater without Lucius leading him? All she had to do was find out who the leader is, and try and keep Malfoy away from them. She knew she needed help doing this—naturally, Ron and Harry were the first people she thought of. They would understand, wouldn't they? Hermione settled back in her chair and leaned her head back. This wasn't going to be easy.

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"Not a bloody chance." The ceiling in the Great Hall grew darker as the golden trio sat at the end of the Gryffindor table, separated from their fellow classmates. Ron's face went red as he angrily broke a cookie in half, spilling crumbs all over the table.

"Ron, if you would just listen to me…" started Hermione. She could feel her cheeks turning redder and redder. Ron could be so difficult sometimes!

"No way, Hermione. If you are even _considering_ befriending that horrible, evil, pig-headed prat—"

"Enough Ron!" Hermione interrupted, almost knocking over her pumpkin juice. "It's not like I would be friends with him, I would just try and…change his ways; give him new insight."

Ron glared at Hermione. "Give him new insight will you? 'Hey Malfoy, I just wanted to let you know that your father is a prat, You-Know-Who is nuts, and you should definitely consider coming to our side and help Harry defeat all evil. How does that sound to you?' And you know what Hermione? I'm sure he'll say, 'oh Ron, how could I not have seen how evil my father was? I'm so glad he's in jail and I would love to join dearest Harry in a fight against You-Know-Who, thank you so much for opening my eyes!'" Ron rolled his eyes and took a big bite out of his croissant. "In my opinion, you've gone bonkers."

It took a lot of effort for Hermione not to strangle Ron as she turned to Harry for support. "Please tell me that you understand, Harry; Dumbledore wouldn't ask if it wasn't extremely important."

Harry turned to Ron and gave him a small frown.

"Hermione's right, Ron," he said quietly. "If Dumbledore feels that Hermione needs to find a way to correct Malfoy's thinking, I suppose that is what she should do."

Harry's eyes seemed extremely…distracted. Hermione couldn't help but wonder if Harry completely agreed with Dumbledore. She peered at the Head table, where several teachers were engaged in small conversation. Dumbledore was hunched over talking to McGonagall; his half-moon spectacles resting at the tip of his nose. Next to McGonagall, Trelawney was talking animatedly to Hagrid, most likely telling him how devastating his near future would be. Hermione's eyes drifted to Snape, who was sitting at the end of the table, staring somewhere over at the Slytherin table.

"Snape…" Hermione whispered. A light bulb went off in her head as she looked at her two best friends thoughtfully.

Ron's head flung up as he searched about the Great Hall, only relaxing when he saw Snape was a safe distance away. "Gosh Hermione, don't scare me like that…I thought he was headed this way—" Ron gave another nervous glance towards the head table before resting his eyes back on his dinner.

Harry cast a knowing look towards Hermione and leaned in closer.

"You think Snape has something to do with Malfoy's ceremony?" He asked her.

Hermione gave a quick nod. "I'm almost sure of it. Malfoy is Snape's 'star pupil'; how could he not somehow be involved?" Her eyes drifted once again to her greasy-haired potions professor. "Besides, he has the dark mark—"

Hermione bit her lip. She knew that it would be difficult to bring Malfoy over to their side, but with Snape—or at least she _thought_ Snape was somehow involved— influencing Malfoy, it would be a near impossible mission to complete.

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So there it is. Next chapter is going to be much more interesting, and there will be more interactions with Draco and Hermione :):) Please don't give up on my story, I promise I'll try to write more often! Ciao!


	4. Who's on Who's Side?

I know it's been a year since I've written for this story, but I did say I would not give up on it, so now that summer is here I will be concentrating on writing it! Thank you to all who have stuck by me! Enjoy:)

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Outside the window, the leaves were slowly changing to orange, red, and yellow. Every so often, a few of them would blow from the trees and gently fall into the calm lake beneath them. As the clock struck six, the previously deserted hallways rapidly filled with young witches and wizards, eager to eat their suppers.

Hermione, on the other hand, sat cross-legged in her room with her books sprawled across the floor, trying to study ancient ruins but hardly paying attention to what she was reading. The only thing going through her mind at the moment was the slimy, hook-nosed potions teacher. Snape had to have something to do with Malfoy's initiation to the Death Eaters, didn't he?

She got up from her books feeling slightly hungry, stretched her legs and wandered over the armoire and peered into the mirror. Looking back at her was her reflection, though it had changed quite a bit from the reflection she saw only just a year ago. Her hair, though normally fighting to stay frizzy, seemed to have lost the battle and relaxed somewhat, forming soft waves around the sides of her face and down her back. Her body seemed to have caught up with her age, for she now had womanly curves and more developed features. But aside her beautiful face and newly developed torso, her eyes seemed as tired as ever. The pressure of the tasks assigned to her have made her beautiful brown eyes droop, albeit it had only been three weeks since her return to Hogwarts. "You had to be made Head-girl, didn't you Hermione?" She said to herself.

To her surprise, her reflection winked and spoke back.

"Well, obviously. You are rather smart, you know," it said as-a-matter-of-factly. "And by the way, Mr. Harry potter and Mr. Ronald Weasley are standing outside the main door, requesting permission for entry."

Hermione did a double-take and squinted into the mirror. "Come again?" she said with curiosity.

Her reflection rolled her eyes and said, "Did Professor Dumbledore not tell you? When you have a guest, I will let you know…now go answer the door!" it said in a very Hermione-like way.

"Oh, well, err, thank you," she said, wondering if she really did snap at people like that in reality. She ran through her door and towards the main door. She smiled as she opened the large door and found two familiar smiling faces standing behind it.

"Ron, Harry! Come in and see the place, you'll just love it!" She exclaimed.

Ron and Harry stepped inside, and almost faltered at the sight of Hermione's quarters.

"Whoa, someone certainly moved on up," Ron said with a slight hint of jealousy.

Harry smiled. "Well, I must agree with Ron on that one, Head-girl."

Hermione giggled and nudged Harry in the ribs. "Oh stop, you both know you can visit any time you'd like; my house is your house."

That seemed to satisfy Ron as he wandered into the main room, goggling the whole way. After Hermione gave the boys the grand tour (excluding Malfoy's room of course) the three Gryffindors took a seat on the comfy couch in the main room.

"Is ferret-boy around?" Ron asked with a snigger.

"No Ron, he isn't. I believe he has a meeting with Professor Flitwick until seven tonight. And his name is _not_ ferret-boy." Hermione said with a glare. "Remember, I am supposed to get him on our side, and having you calling him rodents' names is not going to help,"

Ron gave Hermione a look. "Well, can't I at least call him ferret-boy while he's not around?"

"Ron, please. I haven't even begun to strike up a decent conversation with him," she said, glaring at him for his comment.

"So Hermione," Harry interrupted. "What is your first plan of action? I mean, we need to find out if Snape is behind this, considering Malfoy's father is still in Azkaban. Do you have any ideas?"

Hermione got up from the couch and started pacing. After several seconds, she turned to Harry. "Well, I've been thinking,"

"No surprise there," Ron said under his breath.

Hermione stopped pacing. "…and I_ think_," she continued a little louder, "that maybe Snape doesn't have anything to do with it at all."

Harry and Ron looked at Hermione as if she were dressed in Hagrid's outfit he wore to the Yule Ball a few years back.

Ron broke the awkward silence. "Hermione are you nuts?!"

Harry nodded. "I have to agree with Ron on that one. How could Snape _not_ be involved? He's obviously not on our side, and I'm afraid that he's plotting right under Dumbledore's nose."

Hermione thought for a second before she spoke. It was obvious to her the way Harry felt about Snape, and she knew that she would have to choose her words carefully in order not to anger him. "Well, I was thinking that perhaps he is on our side…"

Harry frowned and opened his mouth to object, but Hermione quickly interjected.

"Now I'm not saying that he's an angel, Harry," she said. "All I'm saying is that if Dumbledore trusted him that much, he has to know that Malfoy is clearly Snape's favorite student, and I feel that if Dumbledore wants Malfoy on our side but thought that Snape would lead him towards the dark side, Dumbledore wouldn't keep Snape around. I mean, it's too risky for him to do that, considering Snape _is_ head of Slytherin house."

Harry stood up and began pacing. Hermione had seen Harry's wrath, and certainly did not want to see it again. She walked over to the couch and sat back down next to Ron.

"Harry, I certainly won't discredit what Snape has done and what he is like, but I think that my best plan of action is to just do my best to work with Malfoy and perhaps find out things from him directly."

Harry turned towards Hermione and gave a snide look. "And how do you propose you do that? I don't imagine that Malfoy will just sit down and reveal the depths of his soul to you, do you?"

Hermione frowned. "Well, I haven't quite thought of how I'll do it, but I will think of something," she said weakly.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Hermione walked along the corridor on the fourth floor, making sure that no students were up wandering and trying to make trouble. As she passed by a nearby classroom, she noticed a small glow coming from the room. She peeked in the door to see a lit fireplace on the far wall, and the form of a man kneeling down in front of it. She started to walk in to tell whomever it was to go back to bed, but then she realized that it wasn't just a man, it was Malfoy.

Hermione opened the door soundlessly and tip-toed into the room, slinking as stealthily as possible towards the back of the room. She crouched down behind one of the desks and strained her ears to listen.

"_How many times must I tell you, you fool. You must stick with the plans we arranged!"_

"I'm trying my best, sir, but the mudblood is just always around! There's no way I could make it without her knowing," Malfoy's voice quivered as he spoke.

"_Trust me, boy, you will regret it if you don't. As I am locked up here in Azkaban, you are free to do as you wish. All I ask is that you continue in my footsteps with the tasks I have assigned to you; is that really so difficult?!"_ The fire roared as the voice spoke.

Though Hermione could not see Malfoy's face, she could see his whole body shaking.

"Ye…yes sir. I shall do what you ask of me," he said in a high-pitched voice.

"_Good, good. I don't want to have to do this again, idiot boy…INCENDIO!"_ As the spell was cast, Malfoy's cape lit right on fire, and Malfoy shrieked with fright and his wand dropped from his hands.

"_Next time, don't be so unwise to cross me,"_ the voice said threateningly, and the fireplace went dead.

Hermione ran out from behind the desk and pointed her wand towards the flaming cape.

"REDUCTO!"

With that, the fire shrunk down to just the tip of Malfoy's cape, and he stamped it out maniacally with his foot, still stunned by the fire that almost burned him alive. He stared at his cape, and then his gaze went straight to Hermione's eyes. Hermione was too shocked to see the horrible look in his eyes to move before Malfoy ran up to her and grabbed the scruff of her collar.

"WHAT DID YOU HEAR?!" He said loudly as he lowered his head close down to her face.

Hermione stared wide-eyed at Malfoy, too frightened to raise her wand. "N...No...Nothing!" She said weakly. "I...I just saw the fire, so I put it out," she kept her gaze straight at Malfoy; in fear of looking at the fireplace and revealing what she saw.

Malfoy released her collar reluctantly, but kept his eyes transfixed on hers and his face just as close. Hermione continued to stare into his eyes, and could almost see the fear beyond them; the fear that she knew was present and obvious just a few seconds ago. Malfoy finally took a step back and looked down at his cape, which was blackened even more than the color usually was, and was still smoking from the fire. Malfoy looked back up at Hermione for another few seconds, then walked straight out the door, leaving a shaken Hermione with tears beginning to form.


End file.
